About Sabrina

Hello! Thanks for stopping by to learn about me. Here are a few things that explain a lot about me:

1. As a kid, I was painfully shy. The kind of shy that makes people think you are stuck up because you never talk to anyone unless you are forced to talk to them. Thankfully, I went to a small school, so I had the normal amount of friends growing up. But I didn’t live near my school, so I didn’t see my friends very much. I spent a lot of time around adults as a kid and usually felt more comfortable with them than with kids my age. I’m still terrible at mingling.

2. I grew up in a house with lots of books. I mean LOTS. Like thousands. My dad was a readaholic and an academician whose field was Anglo-Irish literature (meaning not Gaelic literature). I grew up thinking it was normal for grown-ups to have dinner parties where people quoted Yeats and Shakespeare and Joyce while discussing world events and politics. I had no idea my childhood was weird. But I’m very grateful that it was.

3. I have written professional articles on legal issues, copy, essays, and poetry, but my favorite thing to write is stories. I especially love writing for kids and teens. I think because they are such a tough audience to please, it makes it all the more special when you write something they like. In January of 2014, I earned a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing, with a concentration in Writing for Young People, from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

4. I’m also an attorney. I used to be the CERCLA (superfund) attorney for the Judge Advocate General of the United States Army, where I negotiated clean ups of toxic waste sites with state and other federal agencies, reviewed environmental documentation, and advised my Army clients on environmental law issues. My favorite part of this job was being the back up attorney for Endangered Species Act issues because I love animals. If I weren’t a writer, I would want to be an attorney who protected endangered species. Or a wildlife vet. A wildlife vet is an insanely cool job. I would want to help marine mammals like sea lions and otters or I would want to help big cats like cheetahs and tigers.

5. I live in Pittsburgh with my husband, three kids, four cats, and one very confused dog. My house is always a mess because there are eight of them and one of me. I make pretty good cinnamon rolls and awesome chocolate chip cookies. When I’m not writing, I can usually be found at an ice rink watching a hockey game or practice for one of my kids. I have a love-hate relationship with hockey. Also with the United States Marine Corps. And with my son’s dog.

6. I was born with bilateral clubfoot (meaning both feet) and had to wear a special brace when I was a baby. And a lot of really ugly “corrective” shoes as a kid. My favorite shoes to wear now are Salomon trail runners. But I rarely run in them. I am often drag-jogged by the dog, though.

7. I eat ketchup on my mashed potatoes. I have a chocolate problem.

8. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a Blue Angel. I also wanted to be a veterinarian and an architect.

9. I have dyscalculia (a math learning disability). I’ve never been formally diagnosed, but it’s ridiculously obvious. I am terrible at anything that requires reverse thinking (like time planning, sewing, or carpentry).

10. I often wish I were the girl in a Hallmark movie. And that Scooby-doo was my dog.

If you still want to know more about me, you can follow me on Twitter @writeawhile
where you’ll see that I care about animals, human rights, women’s rights, education, art, and a whole lot of other bleeding heart kinds of things. You can also find me on other places like facebook, instagram, and pinterest. If you’d like to contact me, please visit my Media Kit page.